Gookin, Daniel, 1612-1687

Daniel Gookin, soldier, born in Kent, England, about 1612; died in Cambridge, Massachusetts, 19 March, 1687. He came with his father to Virginia in 1621. During the Indian massacre of 1622, Gookin, with thirty-five men, held his plantation, at what is now Newport News, against the savages. In May, 1644, in consequence of his doctrinal sympathies with the Puritans, he removed to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he was soon afterward appointed a captain of militia and a member of the house of deputies. In 1651 he was speaker of the house, and in 1652 elected a magistrate. In 1656 he was appointed by legislative enactment superintendent of all the Indians who acknowledged the government of Massachusetts, an office which he retained until his death, although he became unpopular because of the protection which, as a magistrate, he extended to the Indians. He zealously co-operated with John Eliot in his efforts for their spiritual instruction. He wrote two books on the Indians, Historical collections of the Indians in New England, written in 1674 (published 1792), and The doings and sufferings of the Christian Indians, completed in 1677 (published 1836).

Daniel Gookin (1612-1686/87) emigrated to America from England in 1641, and settled in Cambridge, Mass., in 1648, where he was probably engaged in the intercolonial coasting trade. He was greatly interested in the welfare of the Indians and in 1656 and again in 1661, he was appointed superintendent of the "praying Indians," (i.e., Christian Indians). His defense of them during the King Philip's War made him extremely unpopular in Massachusetts. In 1681, Gookin was appointed major-general of all the militia of the colony. He wrote three books, none of which were published until after his death: "An Historical Account ... of the Christian Indians of New England," _Transactions and Collections of AAS_, vol. II, 1836; "Historical Collections of the Indians in New England," _Massachusetts Historical Society Collections_, I. ser., I, 1792; and a history of New England which has been lost.

Daniel Gookin (1612-1687), colonist, soldier, magistrate and ardent Puritan, settled in Massachusetts in 1644 and held various positions in the colonial government.

He was greatly interested in the welfare of the Indians who had been converted to Christianity and served as Superintendent of the Praying Indians within the jurisdiction of Massachusetts from 1656 to 1686. Gookin sent his manuscript of this work in 1677 to Robert Boyle, Governor of the Society for Propagation of the Gospel in New England, with the hope that the Society would publish it. For whatever reasons, it was not printed at the time and remained unknown until 1830 when it was rediscovered by Jared Sparks, the famous American historian and editor. According to the inscription on the title page, Sparks had Gookin's manuscript transcribed and loaned his copy in 1831 to Samuel G. Drake, also a well-known historian of the time. While making a second copy of Gookin's work, Gardner added his own detailed historical notes and a separate subject index. This version was used for the first published edition which appeared in the Transactions and Collections of the American Antiquarian Society (vol. II, 1836).

Daniel Gookin (1612-1687), colonist, soldier, magistrate and ardent Puritan, settled in Massachusetts in 1644 and held various positions in the colonial government.

He was greatly interested in the welfare of the Indians who had been converted to Christianity and served as Superintendent of the Praying Indians within the jurisdication of Massachusetts from 1656 to 1686. Gookin sent this manuscript in 1677 to Robert Boyle, Governor of the Society for Propagation of the Gospel in New England, with the hope that the Society would publish it. For whatever reasons, it was not printed at the time and remained unknown until 1830 when it was rediscovered and later published by the American Antiquarian Society.

Daniel Gookin (1612-1687), colonist, soldier, magistrate and ardent Puritan settled in Massachusetts in 1644 and held various positions in the colonial government.

He was greatly interested in the welfare of the Indians who had been converted to Christianity and served as Superintendent of the Praying Indians within the jurisdiction of Massachusetts from 1656 to 1686. Gookin devoted much energy and personal expense in carrying out his duties which included maintaining general order, issuing warrants, giving instructions, and imposing penalities.